Nothing a Morning Jog Can't Fix
by inkbun
Summary: AU/High School - Derek is an angsty, overweight and antisocial loner. Stiles is the popular kid who's going to help him lose weight. Derek's only agreeing to it because Stiles won't stop bothering him. Obviously. Oh, and where did Stiles get the idea Derek likes Danny? STEREK
1. Chapter 1

**First Teen Wolf fic! Hope you all enjoy it!**

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00

For Derek Hale, high school was just a combination of all things ironic and cliche in the world. Beacon Hills High School was not an exception to the rule; place a few hundred teenagers in a confined space for 5 days a week and voila, you have yourself the Lord of the Flies with axe-body spray and lipgloss. The hierarchy was clear. There were the popular kids who ruled the school one way or another and the less fortunate ones who just did their best to graduate within the typical four years in hopes of becoming someone once they were out of there.

Then there was Derek. A complete nobody. He wasn't bullied or anything, but no one bothered to pay attention to him either. He did everything alone and didn't mind. Well, didn't mind enough to actually make the effort to get along with anyone anyway. He knew he was a broody, angsty teenager, but he felt that he had the right to be. His parents had passed away in a car accident a few years back, leaving him and his sister Laura under his uncle's care. He was born with the lack of basic social skills and was more than twice the recommended weight for his height. And to top if off, he was gay. It was like he couldn't catch a break.

He groaned inwardly at the sound of Lydia's voice, chatting away incessantly with her best friend Allison. Those two were definitely in the upper penthouse of the hierarchy, alongside Lydia's asshole jock of a boyfriend Jackson who was standing next to the girls looking bored out of his mind. Derek's eyes automatically landed on Danny, who was laughing at something Jackson said.

Derek had been so preoccupied with staring at Danny that he bumped right into someone else, and he had to suppress a groan as he watched the papers in his hands go flying everywhere. And by now, all students in the vicinity was watching him in amusement and surprise. Derek snapped his head up, ready to give the other a scathing warning, when he saw exactly who he had run into.

Stiles Stilinski.

Of all the goddamn people. Stiles Stilinski.

Stiles was the standing exception to all the rules of high school. He was _the_ popular kid at Beacon Hills, even ranking above Jackson and Lydia, and he wasn't even the captain of the Lacrosse team. He didn't have an attitude. In fact, Stiles just spent his days always laughing, doing something equal parts genius and stupid and getting himself into trouble. Stiles didn't date anyone popular, and as far as Derek was concerned, he wasn't driving around a Porsche like Jackson did, but somehow, he was still at the very top of the food chain. Simply put, Stiles seemed to like everyone and _everyone_ loved him back.

Except for Derek anyway.

Derek let out a sigh as Stiles stood there with his mouth open.

"Sorry, man! You OK?" Stiles asked, looking genuinely guilty as he eyed the papers now scattered around the hallway. Instead of answering, Derek bent down and began picking his assignments up, wanting to leave the scene as soon as possible. He was starting to grow uncomfortable with the attention, especially now that he could see Jackson sneering at him from the corner of his eyes.

He groaned inwardly when he saw Stiles starting to pick up the remaining sheets. _Of course he would_. Of course Stiles would help him out instead of just walking away like everyone else.

"Here," Stiles said as he handed Derek the papers he had managed to pick up. "Sorry about that," he continued with a lop-sided, apologetic grin. Jesus, the kid had a big ass smile. Derek took the pile without as much as a syllable of response and just rushed off to his next class. Stile watched the retreating figure, scratching his head in confusion.

"What died up his ass?" Jackson snorted, approaching Stiles. The latter just shrugged in response. He knew of Derek Hale. Most people in the school knew of the aloof teen without _actually_ knowing him. It was hard to miss him, really. He was huge. Both vertically and horizontally. He didn't speak much (the only time anyone heard Derek speak was during presentations) and had no known associates within the school. Stiles and he had History together, and that was as far as their interaction went.

He was just about start making his way to his class when he saw a piece of paper by the lockers. He bent down to pick it up and saw a neatly written "Derek Hale" at the top right corner. It was their history assignment. Figuring that Derek would probably appreciate his homework being turned in on time, Stiles placed the paper in between his history textbook so that he could return it to its rightful owner. He was going to get some mad karma points for this one.

As soon as Stiles entered the history classroom, he could see Derek in the way back rummaging through his binder, looking to be in quite a state of distress. Stiles grinned and carefully pulled out the assignment he picked up and approached the other nonchalantly.

"Perhaps you're looking for this?" he asked, waving the piece of paper in front of Derek's noise. The other scowled and snatched it away, eying Stiles warily instead of an audible thank you.

"You're welcome!" Stiles only continued with a surprisingly satisfied smile on his face. He was certain that he had just managed to secure enough karma points to counter act the loss from eating all of Scott's fries during lunch - Score! Derek watched as the smaller teen skipped, yes _skipped, _to his seat a couple of rows ahead of him and then stared at the paper in his hand. He suddenly felt guilty about not having thanked the other properly.

He pushed the niggling thought aside when the teacher walked in, looking prim and proper as always.

"Alright, you'll all be working on the next project in pairs."

A collective noise of approval shot up at the statement. Derek, on the other hand, wanted to strangle the man.

"Not so fast. I'm pairing you guys up."

The noise of approval was quickly overturned by a much louder noise of protest. Derek still wanted to strangle the other man. He couldn't care less who he was paired up with. He just didn't want to do anything with anyone else other than himself, and that was that. He waited for his name to be called, keeping himself entertained by watching the looks of disgust, relief and hope flashing across other students' faces.

"Derek Hale, you're with Stiles."

The entire room went completely silent, and Derek hadn't quite realized that his name was called out until he saw half the room staring at him, while the rest was shooting Stiles a sympathetic look. Derek scowled, knowing exactly what everyone was thinking. The Kennedy of Beacon Hills High was now forced to work with someone who's believed to sacrifice baby goats the first day of every month (Derek still had no idea how that rumor got started). No one gave a shit about Derek Hale, but the moment he's paired up with Stiles Stilinski, everyone loses their shit.

Derek spared a glance at his new partner and saw the teen flash him a dorky grin with a thumbs up, which made Derek question his mental state. No one should be happy to work with him, and he wasn't even being self-loathing. Even he wouldn't want to work with someone like him. It was just a simple fact.

Once the information regarding the project was explained, the teacher gave everyone 10 minutes to share their contact details and make arrangements. Derek predictably remained glued to his seat, while Stiles predictably bounced towards him, his phone already in his hand. Stiles saved Derek's number after giving the brooding teenager a call to leave his own.

"So, your place or mine?" Stiles asked as he pushed his phone back into his pocket.

"The library," Derek answered gruffly.

"Come on! You can't even talk in the library and I'd really rather not spend any more time than absolutely necessary in that place," Stiles countered with a pout, knowing that the librarian was out to club him if he ever caused another commotion in the sacred shrine that was the school's library. It was already a miracle that he wasn't blacklisted yet.

"Fine. My place." Derek was definitely not going to subject himself to spending time at anyone else's house.

"Awesome. Hey, do you really sacrifice baby goats every first day of the month? Because you know, today's May 1st, and I'm not saying I'm judging you for it, because hey, if that's your thing, that's cool, but I personally just prefer not to be around when it _does_ happen? And I'm not sure if I'm required by law to report it _and_ I don't do well with blood, so...?"

Derek stared at the other incredulously. _Is he being serious_? Derek tried to find evidence of mockery in the pair of wide, brown eyes staring back at him, but instead found only genuine concern and macabre curiosity. Something was severely wrong with Stilinski and he wasn't even sure if he wanted to know.

"I'll wait till you leave to do it then," Derek answered sarcastically and resisted the urge to slam his head against the desk when he saw a look of apprehension and shock spread across Stiles' features. He opened his mouth to correct himself but decided against it, partly because he couldn't be bothered and partly because he was sort of enjoying the outright look of horror on the other's face.

"My dad's the sheriff," Stiles began, leaning back a little. Derek just looked at him as if to ask what the point of that was. "He'll know if you kill me."

Derek rolled his eyes but didn't make a retort.

"So I'll see you after school? In front of the library?" Stiles asked, recovering surprisingly quickly. Either the kid caught onto the joke or had a severe case of ADHD. Derek's money was on the latter.

"Yeah."

"Cool. Just a head's up, I suck at history."

Derek only snorted at the common knowledge. Everyone knew that Stiles was pathologically incapable of memorizing dates or connecting who did what in the grand scheme of world history. Derek, on the other hand, had always been a bit of a history geek and had it down to memorizing the name of Napoleon's favorite horse.

Derek was so not looking forward to this assignment.

00

As soon as school was out, Stiles was in front of the library after bidding his friends good bye. The rest of his group seemed to already know about the assignment (Stiles didn't see why it was such a hot piece of gossip) and either asked him to stay strong or take pictures if he did see baby goats at the Hale residence. After a couple of minutes, he saw Derek approaching him from a distance.

"Hey," Stiles greeted with a smirk as Derek spotted him. "So I'll follow you with my car?"

"Whatever."

Stiles trailed after Derek, who was walking at a brisk pace towards the parking lot. They got into their respective cars an eventually arrived at the Hale residence. The place was a typical picture perfect house, and when Stiles entered the house, he had to do a double take. It was so...normal. Too normal. White, clean with floral arrangements and nice pictures adorning the walls. He had expected coffins and walls painted in black and red, with baby goats in cages and chains everywhere, and a part of him was actually disappointed.

Derek rolled his eyes at the other teen's expression and just headed upstairs. Stiles promptly followed suit, taking in everything that was apparently Derek Hale's house. It was too clean, too pretty, and when they entered Derek's house, he just didn't know what to think anymore.

The room was not only spacious but spotless. There wasn't even a single article of clothing on the floor or hanging loosely off a chair. The place looked straight out of some magazine under the article _This is probably what a rich lawyer's room looks like_.

"This is your room?" Stiles asked incredulously, running his hands all over the DVD and album collection adorning one side of the room (all without permission of course). "You live here?"

"Yes. Now can we get started?"

"Come on! We just got here!" Stiles whined, now roaming freely around the room with his mouth agape. Derek suppressed the urge to grab the other by the throat and instead settled for looking over the assignment guideline. He doubted Mr. ADHD was going to be much help anyway.

After about 5 more minutes of gawking and vocalizing his random observations (which Derek promptly ignored), the two were finally dividing up the work. It lasted for 4 minutes 28 seconds, when Stiles shot Derek a sly grin..

"What?" Derek asked roughly, getting increasingly annoyed by the second.

"So Derek, seeing anyone you like at school?"

"No," he answered defensively, turning his attention back to the paper in front of him.

"You sure?" Stiles pushed, leaning forward.

"Yes, I'm sure."

"Are you really, really sure?"

"Can we just get back to this?" Derek let out an exasperated sigh, knowing that the answer wasn't going to be a yes.

"You sure?" Stiles' lips stretched into a sneaky little grin, and Derek wondered if he could get away with attempted murder. "So, which way do you swing, Mr. Hale?"

"What?"

"A little birdie told me that you had a thing for Danny boy."

Derek really wanted to know how these rumors got around. First off, he hardly knew Danny. Secondly, he didn't even know that people gave a shit about who he liked. But the important thing was the history assignment. He didn't care what others thought. So he just answered with a curt "yeah" and went back to reading.

"Hey, I'm cool with it," Stiles continued, putting his hands up with a shrug. "Just didn't' know you're gay."

"Well now you know, can we focus?" Derek replied through gritted teeth. It wasn't that he made efforts to hide his sexuality. It was more like, people never asked and he never answered. And as far as his high school went, it was one of those rare schools where homosexuality was accepted unanimously, so he wasn't going to have too much to worry about even if Stiles did decide to blab his mouth. Stiles looked thoughtful as he continued to stare at Derek, a small crease between his eyebrows.

"Hey, do you find me attractive?" Stiles asked with a serious expression, and Derek wasn't sure if he was joking or not. Either way, he wasn't going to dignify that with an answer, so he turned back to dividing up the assignment.

00

The following day, Stiles insisted that they work together with a rather persuasive argument that he wasn't going to get much work done alone. With much self-control and reminding himself that Stiles' lack of productivity was going to hurt both their grades, Derek yielded. They were back at Derek's room, with Stiles browsing through his DVD collection as if he owned the damn thing. Derek had come to realize and accept (against his will) that Stiles had very little or no grasp on the concept of the following two things: personal space and personal belongings.

Derek figured he'd let it slide as long as he didn't start stealing shit.

"Can we watch a movie before we start?" Stiles asked, his eyes still glued to the collection.

"No."

"Please?"

"You came here to get work done, so do it."

"You're no fun," Stiles pouted and plopped onto Derek's bed. Derek cringed at the action. He had issues with anyone other than himself on the bed. "Alright, if you aren't willing to watch a movie, then let's talk."

"No, let's work."

"Come on, we can work later. School just got out."

"Don't care."

"So I was thinking," Stiles began, looking quite contemplative as he rolled onto his stomach and faced Derek.

"What a surprise," the other muttered under his breath.

"I think we can mutually benefit from this situation."

"That's the point of group assignments."

"No man, this is so much more than that."

Derek could feel a migraine heading his way. He decided it'd be more efficient to just entertain Stiles for a couple of minutes and then delve into the assignment instead of fighting it.

"How about we make a deal."

"What deal."

"You help me with history because I'm pretty sure I'm barely scraping by with a C in that class, and I help you get close to Danny."

Derek stared at the other as if he had just suggested salsa dancing naked outside.

"Think about it! It's a win win! I get my grades up, because I know you're like some history genius and you get a shot at scoring Danny, who by the way has a really great body. I've seen him in the lockers and I'm telling you. It's like top tier stuff right there, and look, I'm even comfortable enough to admit it."

"Will you just work on the damn assignment if I agree to it?"

"Yes."

"Fine then."

"Awesome!" Stiles looked awfully pleased with himself as he rolled out of bed. "I won't let you down, man."

"Oh, yay," Derek drawled sarcastically. Yup, the migraine was definitely there now.

00

Next day, Stiles was in Derek's room, on Derek's bed, playing with Derek's wolf figure while munching on Derek's bag of chips. Derek decidedly ignored the crumbs Stiles was leaving on his otherwise freshly washed blanket, having long accepted the fact that it was better for his blood pressure to turn a blind eye when it came to Stiles Stilinski.

"Here's the plan," Stiles began, all business, looking as if he was preparing himself to break into Fort Knox. Derek grunted in response, letting Stiles get whatever it was in his head out of his system if he was going to salvage any chance of them getting work done in the next couple of hours.

"We're going to go jogging every morning."

Derek stopped highlighting his notes and stared at Stiles.

"Look, I'm not trying to say that outer beauty is more important than inner beauty, but it's probably going to help you to you know, get in shape."

Despite himself, Derek looked down onto his body and grimaced. He had really let himself go over the last few years after the death of his parents and still wasn't anywhere near making full recovery. He then looked at Stiles, who was all lean muscles (still a bit on the skinny side, but whatever) from Lacrosse and general hyperactivity.

"So I'll come by every morning at...let's say...6? We'll go jogging then go to school and I can even help you with weight training after school."

Derek wanted so badly to flat out decline the offer, but the way Stiles was looking at him told him that Stiles wasn't going to give up on it no matter what.

"Fine," Derek muttered finally. He vaguely registered the fact that, when it came to Stilinski, he ended up just agreeing to whatever came out of his mouth.

"Awesome! I bet you're a good looking man underneath all that..." Stiles trailed off and cleared his throat. "I'm not saying you're not good-looking now, but-"

"Can we just focus now?"

"Yes, sir."

00

Derek scowled when he realized that he had actually gotten up early and gotten ready for the jogging Stiles had promised him. He was immediately in a foul mood when he realized that he had followed instructions given by _Stiles Stilinski _of all people. Stiles arrived surprisingly right on time, already having jogged all the way to Derek's place, and Derek couldn't believe how chirpy the other teen was. At 6 in the goddamn morning.

They ran side by side, Stiles giving Derek a break every once in a while. Derek grimaced at how out of shape he was. He used to be able to run miles after miles without breaking much of a sweat, but now he was struggling to keep himself upright. He just had to find comfort in the fact that he turned to stress-binging as opposed to getting himself addicted cocaine. Losing weight was going to be a lot easier than getting over a substance addiction.

"Well that was fun!" Stiles commented as they approached the Hale residence again. Unlike Derek who was cursing gravity, Stiles looked at complete ease. "So I'll see you in history!"

Derek watched Stiles bounce off and began to wonder how all this even came to happen. One day he was the lone guy, completely happy with being cut off from the rest of the school, and before he knew it, he was hanging out with Stiles Stilinski every single day. Before letting his thoughts wander off, he shook his head and pushed it aside. He needed to take a shower quickly if he didn't want to be late to school.

00

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**Ah I'm nervous about this...continue?**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you for all the words of encouragement after the last chapter! Greatly appreciated! Hope you enjoy this one!**

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Derek nearly punched Stiles that afternoon. It was Wednesday, which meant that they were done with school at noon. Derek was on his way to his car when Stiles grabbed him by the shoulder out of nowhere. Derek instinctively whirled around, ready to strike. Stiles put his hands up in mock surrender, his eyes comically wide. Derek sighed and lowered his fist and rolled his eyes.

"What," Derek let out gruffly, continuing towards his car. The smaller teen quickly regained composure and hopped besides him.

"Hey man, we're heading out to get some pizza. Wanna join?"

Derek looked past Stiles and saw the usual group (Lydia, Jackson, Isaac, Scott, Allison and, of course, Danny) standing a few feet away. Lydia and Jackson both looked like they couldn't care less if he joined or not. Isaac was just being his smiling self. Allison was giving him a warm smile which Derek assumed was her way of saying "Yes, you may join us," and Danny was busy with his phone.

"I don't-"

"Come on, you gotta eat, right?"

"Actually-"

"Danny's gonna be there," Stiles added in a sing-song voice, a smirk on his face.

"I don't care," Derek retorted, and really he didn't. He didn't harbor any feelings towards the tall, gay and handsome, and he really didn't think dealing with the rest of the group (namely Lydia and Jackson) was worth_ any _pizza. And wasn't Stiles the one that was supposed to help him lose weight?

"Yes you do. Come on, let's go," Stiles draped his arm around Derek's shoulders, which only succeeded in looking awkward, since Derek was a good few inches taller than Stiles. Jackson was outright mocking Stiles for the height difference, while both Scott and Allison greeted him with matching smiles. Lydia gave him a once-over and shrugged, and Derek bit back an insult.

The pizza place wasn't that far away from the school, so they all ended up walking. Others from his school were there as well, and they all shot Derek a curious look. What was Derek Hale doing with the most popular group in all of Beacon Hills High? Derek, of course, decided to ignore the looks altogether and remained silent for the most part. Strangely enough, the demeanor didn't seem to discourage Scott and Allison from making efforts to get him to speak.

Once they were situated around a table, Derek just sat there as the others argued over what to get. Stiles had basically forced Derek to sit between himself and Danny (no surprise there), leaving Derek both annoyed and uncomfortable. It was strangely unnerving to be sitting next to Danny, even if he didn't actually have feelings for the other teen. But he was quite glad that Danny seemed friendly enough. He wasn't snobby like Jackson and wasn't loud like Stiles or Scott.

"Hey is the paper for English due Friday or Monday?" Danny asked Derek as they waited for their pizza. They had English together, but this was the first time they actually spoke each other.

"Actually, tomorrow."

"Oh, shit, it's tomorrow? Damn it, I'm screwed...thanks man," Danny mumbled with a weak grin. Stiles gave Derek a wink and a nudge, which made him wonder if Stiles could be any more obvious. He really shouldn't haved expected anything less from Stiles.

When the pizza came, Stiles was the first to delve in.

And Derek was thoroughly disgusted with Stiles' table manners _or the lack of_. It was as if the boy wasn't aware of the limited capacity of his own mouth. He kept stuffing things in there, pieces hanging out, crumbs all over the place. Derek had to ask how this was the same guy that had won the hearts of everyone at Beacon Hills High. Lydia kept complaining about the calories, which had Derek wanting to ask her why the hell she agreed to pizza in the first place then.

It was only a matter of time before Stiles began choking on the combination of pizza and chicken wings. Derek didn't realize that he had handed Stiles his glass of water until Stiles was taking it gratefully and chugging it. Derek watched, anticipating the content of Stilinkski's mouth to be spewed all over the table soon. And he really, sincerely, did not want to see that.

"Oh my God, I almost _died_," Stiles sputtered dramatically, handing the glass back to Derek, who took it with a slow shake of his head.

"So close," Jackson muttered, eliciting chuckles from everyone else, as Stiles glared at Jackson looking thoroughly scandalized. Derek felt his lips tug at the expression, so he focused on the slice of pizza in front of him instead. But he didn't miss the way Lydia raised an eyebrow at him. Derek shot the girl a warning look back, but it clearly didn't discourage Lydia from smirking at him.

After pizza, Stiles was back in Derek's room. The taller teen wondered if the other was going to claim permanent residency soon. Stiles looked perfectly at ease on his bed, with a book taken from Derek's collection in his hands. And even as he read, he seemed to fidget a lot, switching from lying on his back to his stomach, and then to his side and so on and so forth. Derek wanted to tell the other to stop moving, but gave up and instead kept himself occupied with his Biology assignment. It wasn't due for another week, but he was never the one to procrastinate.

About half an hour later, Stiles began whining about how bored he was, demanding that they watch a movie. Derek had to wonder why Stiles bothered hanging out in his room if he was so bored all the time.

"I'll even let you pick the movie," Stiles continued with a forced grin on his face.

"No," Derek answered decisively, not even looking up from his assignment.

"Why not?"

"Because I'm doing my homework."

"Is it due tomorrow?"

"No."

"Then let's watch a movie!"

"No."

"Pleaseeee," Stiles whined, banging his feet against the wall like some child. Derek grit his teeth and swung around in his chair.

"Fine."

"You're awesome."

"Whatever. Just pick something."

"I get to pick?"

Derek let out a frustrated sigh as Stiles hopped off the bed and bounced towards his DVD collection, looking like a kid in a candy store. Derek wondered how the other managed to stay so bouncy and happy all the time. It just didn't seem reasonable that anyone could stay in a good mood all day, everyday.

"Some of them aren't even opened," Stiles mused as he ran his fingers across the DVDs.

"Laura buys random DVDs and never watch them."

"Laura?"

"My sister."

"What! How come you never told me you had a sister?"

"You never asked."

"But we're like _this _now," Stiles crossed his index and middle finger. "Can't believe you didn't tell me..."

Derek honestly didn't recall the two ever becoming BFFs. In fact, he had no recollection of becoming BFFs with _anyone_.

"Where is she?" Stiles asked, still looking through the collection.

"Out of state. She's in college."

"Right. She hot?"

Derek shot the other a warning look. Stiles pursed his lips and looked away immediately.

"Well, I say we open one of these...oh, this is a good one. The Ugly Truth. I heard that anything with Katherine Heigl is in is like the romcom bible on how to get a man, which you need, because you want to get with Danny, who's a man. Well, that's what Allison and Lydia told me, and I'm pretty sure that they're reliable sources. Alright, I'm going to open it."

"I don't want to watch a chick-flick."

"Ohhhh too late," Stiles cackled as he peeled the wrapper off. "Come on, turn it on." Stiles threw the DVD at Derek, who caught it with ease. Knowing he was going to hate the next 90 or so minutes, he turned on the TV (yes, Derek Hale had a flat screen TV in his own room) and inserted the disk. He plopped onto his bed, still very much disgruntled.

And before he had enough time to protest, Stiles was on the bed as well, next to him, leaning against the wall behind him with his legs stretch out forward.

"Do we have popcorn?" Stiles asked as the movie began.

"...yeah, why."

"Why? What do you mean why! Stop the movie, Quick!"

Derek obliged, not appreciating how Stiles was shouting right next to his ears.

"Let's go make some popcorn first."

"We just ate."

"I don't see how that's relevant," Stiles replied slowly as if he really didn't understand the correlation between the two concepts. Derek opened his mouth to explain but refrained, instead settling for trekking downstairs to the kitchen. He dug around the cabinets and fished out a bag of popcorn, which Stiles was more than glad to throw into the microwave. And just as Derek expected, Stiles stared into the microwave, waiting impatiently for it to finish.

Once the popcorn was poured into a large bowl (because Derek was NOT about to risk allowing a greasy popcorn bag onto his pristine sheets), they headed back upstairs. Derek knew that his room was going to smell like butter for the next few days but just sighed in defeat as Stiles promptly began stuffing his face.

Less than 10 minutes into the movie, Derek had to fight the urge to bash his head into the wall, not because the movie was terrible (which it was, by the way. He liked things gettin' blown up), but because Stiles refused to stop asking questions.

"Do you think Gerard Butler's hot?"

"No," Derek replied gruffly.

"Really? What about the other guy? The doctor?"

"No."

"If you had to choose between the two though, who?"

"Neither."

"But what if you _had_ to choose?"

"The doctor. Whatever."

"Yeah! That's what I thought! 'Cause he's more like Danny."

Derek really had to wonder why Stiles was under the illusion that he was madly and helplessly in love with Danny. Sure, he thought the guy was good looking. Hell, everyone else in school, regardless of gender, thought Danny was hot. But he didn't _like_ Danny, yet Stiles was volunteering his heart and soul into bringing the two together...

Derek couldn't be bothered to tell him otherwise.

"So you don't think Katherine Heigl's hot?"

"Do you?"

"Yeah. Obviously."

"Right."

"Hey, on a scale of 1 to 10, how gay would you say you are?"

Derek didn't even answer.

"So what's it like being with a guy? I mean, I'm guessing it's a lot easier than being with a girl, right?"

"Can we please just watch the movie?"

"We _are _watching the movie."

"In silence."

"You're no fun."

Derek snorted ungracefully. It took less than 2 minutes for Stiles to break the peace again.

"I don't think this video's really gonna help you much."

"No shit."

"I thought it'd help you get guys!"

"Has it occurred to you that I'm a guy too?"

"Ha! That's true. Wait, so have you had a, you know, a boyfriend before?"

"No."

"See, we have so much in common already. I haven't had a girlfriend either."

"...How come?" Derek asked and immediately regretted it. He didn't mean to sound like he actually cared.

"Haven't met the right person I guess. Sorta had a crush on Lydia but that died pretty quickly," Stiles answered, looking thoughtful. "But if I was into dudes, I'd totally go for you."

Derek stiffened at the comment and ventured a glance at the other. Beacon Hills High wasn't exactly homophobic (in fact, strangely overly supportive. Yay California), but it was still strange to listen to a straight guy talk about his hypothetical interest in him.

"In fact, I would totally ask you out on a date. I mean, you're always broody and mopey and stuff, but you're kinda cool, you know?"

"Thanks, but I'm not interested."

"Hey! I'm a catch and you know it. Look at this. You can't possibly say no to this," Stiles countered, waving his hands in front of himself and eventually pointing at his face. "Yeah? That's right. You're just bitter because you can't have this," Stiles added with a smug smile, looking thoroughly pleased himself. Derek decided against shooting him down as he stared at the wide grin.

Derek, for the first time, decided to pay attention to Stiles. He realized that Stiles had a slightly upturned nose that surprisingly worked for him. He had these big, brown eyes that were both playful and soft, and Derek had to admit, all in all, Stiles was subjectively a very good looking individual.

"Take a picture, it'll last longer."

Derek snapped up at the sudden voice. Stiles was watching him back, but he didn't seem offended or overtly sarcastic. And Derek realized that the other was being serious when Stiles pulled his phone and turned on the camera.

"Come on, scoot in," Stiles commanded as he leaned against Derek, a goofy grin on his face. "Smile, ya grumpy."

"I'm not taking a picture."

"Yes you are. Come on! We're celebrating here."

"And what exactly are we celebrating?"

"That we came to the consensus that we would potentially make an awesome couple if I was gay!"

Derek didn't know what to say to that. And he began to wonder just exactly how Stiles' brain was wired.

"Come on, my arm's getting tired."

Derek scowled just as Stiles took a picture. Stiles looked at his phone and began laughing, the booming sound ringing through the room.

"Oh man, this is awesome. Here let me send it to you."

Derek was not a happy camper. His finger hovered over the delete button but hesitated and eventually decided to keep it. He had to admit, it was sort of funny with the way he looked so absolutely unhappy with the world, while Stiles looked as if he had won the lottery.

"Can we just watch the movie now?" Derek grumbled, and Stiles nodded with a huge grin on his face.

About half an hour later, Derek noticed that something was missing. It was an inkling feeling that kept creeping up inside him, until the realization hit that Stiles hadn't said a single word for over 5 minutes. He looked to his side and sighed when he faced Stiles sleeping soundly against the wall, his mouth hanging open slightly. How the guy went from hyperactive to knocked out cold in a matter of a few minutes, if not seconds, baffled him.

Derek got off the bed as quietly as he could manage with his size and gently moved Stiles so the smaller teen was lying flat on his bed. He figured Stiles would appreciate the gesture later, when he wouldn't have to wake up with horrible neck and back pain. Derek scratched his head, wondering if it was chilly in the room and decided to pull out a thin blanket from the closet. He draped it over the other and watched momentarily in fascination at the way Stiles seemed to be smiling even in his sleep.

Eventually, Derek realized that he was behaving like a sparkling vampire and forced himself to his desk. He continued with the assignment he had been working on before he was so rudely interrupted by a hyperactive pain in the ass.

o0o

Stiles grinned lazily into the pillow. Something smelled really nice. And whatever he was lying on definitely felt good...and whatever was covering him was just so nice and warm. He shifted slightly, inhaling the scent and let out a low sound of satisfaction. Wherever he was, he wanted to stay here forever.

Wait, what?

Stiles' eyes snapped open, and he nearly gave himself a heart attack when he saw Derek staring at him from his desk.

"Holy shit! Did I fall asleep?"

"Yeah."

"Why didn't you wake me up? We could've finished the movie together!"

Derek turned back to his assignment with a noncommittal shrug.

"What time is it?"

"Almost 7."

"_Seven_? Already? Wow, I must've been tired," Stiles muttered, stretching his arms over his head. "I'm hungry."

Derek groaned inwardly. How was it possible that someone so small was always demanding to be fed?

"Go home and eat then."

"But I want to eat _now_."

"I wasn't aware that I was supposed to care."

"You have a weird way of showing how much you really care about me. Can we eat now?"

Derek closed his eyes, counted to three and closed his laptop, figuring that he was not going to be getting any work done until the over-sized Furby was fed.

"Fine. What do you want."

"You know how to cook?"

"I didn't say I was going to cook."

"Can you though?"

"...Yes."

"That. Is. AWESOME! Can you cook now?"

"No."

"Please!"

"No."

"Pleaseeee!"

"Fine," Derek hissed between gritted teeth. He was starting to see a definitive pattern here. Stiles suggests something, Derek doesn't want to do it, Stiles annoys the hell out of him until he does it anyway. Repeat. Indefinitely.

Derek didn't understand why he was letting it happen, considering he never gave two shits about what other people wanted. That was also one of the main reasons why he didn't even bother making friends or even acquaintances. He had run out of fucks to give back in '09, but somehow, Stiles Stilinski had managed to burrow his way through his life and was in his hair for at least 5 hours a day.

"Your kitchen's awesome."

"It's just a kitchen."

"Still awesome."

Derek rummaged through the fridge, figuring pasta would do the job. It was a long-standing secret, but one of Derek's favorite pastime activities was cooking. He had found it therapeutic and a good way to keep fond memories of his mother, who always found time to cook with him ever since he was young. It was their thing (with Laura of course), and he had continued the tradition even after her death.

Stiles was now sitting on one of the bar stools, his eyes following Derek's movement. He wasn't thrilled by the attention but let him be, figuring this was better than letting Stiles roam around the house on his own.

"You need any help?" Stiles offered, and Derek nodded reluctantly when he saw how eager the other was to be a part of the process. Stiles did a little dance before hopping off the stool and joining him by the stove.

"What would you like me to do, sir?"

"Chop these," Derek asked gruffly, handing him an onion. "And don't bleed all over the kitchen."

"Aww dang it, onions?"

"I thought you wanted to help."

"So mean," Stiles grumbled but obliged, wiping his eyes with his sleeves every once in a while. Derek almost (_almost_ being the keyword here) felt guilty, but let the show go on.

"It's so sad!" Stiles wailed dramatically, still tearing up. Derek rolled his eyes.

Once the dinner was almost finished, Derek commanded Stiles to watch over the sauce as he set the table. Stiles made a comment about how proper and fancy Derek was being, considering it was just dinner between two friends, and Derek explained to Stiles that setting the table wasn't _fancy. _He shuddered to think what a typical dinner looked like at the Stilinski household.

"Holy shit, this stuff is really good," Stiles commented, mouth full of partially chewed pasta. Derek did his best to not stare directly at it and was having a hard time deciding whether to be pleased with the compliment or disgusted with the horrible table manners.

"Like, really, really good. You'd make an awesome gay boyfriend."

Derek didn't know what to say to that.


End file.
